In wireless networks, the rate of data consumption and the density of mobile devices are increasing. With the increase in the density of mobile devices, device-to-device (D2D) communications via local connectivity has emerged. D2D communications are often performed over WiFi or Bluetooth over an unlicensed band. However, D2D may also be performed over a licensed cellular band in a cellular network via central controlled dedicated bands with an improved interference controlled environment.
D2D communications may be used for user equipment (UE) cooperation, which may increase cellular throughput and coverage. In a cellular system, there are significantly more idle UEs than serving UEs at a given time. When UEs are close to each other, UE cooperation may offer the benefits of virtual multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) receivers.